Matisse’s ‘Still life with a Magnolia’ (1942), and its apparent Simplified drawing is nothing of the sorts. Rather, the painting, that took more than 12 years to complete, is not only a revolutionary way to represent life, it is also representative of Matisse’s underlying idea that colour possesses great healing powers and that art has the strength to communicate to the soul of man in mysterious ways. A man that believed in the greatness of beauty despite all the tragedies he lived through, he infamously, and very correctly, claimed: ” There are always flowers for those who want to see them.”…. just one of the many significances embodied in this little masterpiece.

“Art lives and dies in the unique heart of he who carries it, just as all feelings only live and expand in the souls of those who feel them. There is no history of art — there is the history of artists.” Marianne von Werefkin

The museum was designed by Portuguese architect Siza Vieira, and collects various contemporary works by many international artists ( Anselm Kiefer, Anish Kappor, Richard Serra, Sugimoto, and others). I profoundly enjoyed the works, specially the individual site specific installations.

This art installation, named Le miroir de l’eau, placed across from Place de la Bourse and designed by landscape artist Michel Corajoud is composed of about 2 cm of water which alternates in depth and rhythm, creating beautiful reflections of the heavens, the architecture and the children whom run around as if they are walking on clouds. I’m pretty sure the pictures on my Leica are muchhhh better… when I get home.